First Lady Encourages GW Graduates to “Take it Global”

During a commencement address Michelle Obama gave on Sunday for George Washington University’s class of 2010, she focused on the value of international education and urged each student to go global. The First Lady recognized the contributions many of the GW graduates have made both locally and globally, challenged them to “[k]eep being you, to keep doing what you’re doing. Just take it global.”

She noted that a record number of George Washington University students have volunteered and applied to organizations like Teach for America and the Peace Corps, and that – for the second year running – GW has led the universities of its size in the number of undergraduate alumni serving in the Peace Corps.

She said:

When you serve others abroad, you’re serving our country, too. You’re showing the world the true face of America –- our generosity, our strength, the enduring power of our ideals, the infinite reservoir of our hope. And yes, serving abroad will make you stronger, more competitive, a more valuable asset for a career in the public or private sectors. Just talk to any of your colleagues who have spent some time abroad. And one of the first things they’ll tell you, for example, is that you’ll never learn a language or develop self-reliance as quickly as you will when you’re on your own in a foreign country!

But, she also called on GW students to give back in other ways as well. Noting that nearly half of GW’s graduates study abroad, she encouraged those students to reach out to those behind them and encourage those students to study abroad, “especially students from communities and backgrounds who might not normally consider it.” She recognized the advantage GW students have with their campus being located only blocks away from major internationally-focused organizations such as the State Department and World Bank, but noted that “many Americans either don’t have those opportunities or simply don’t consider them.”

Speaking from her own experience as a first-generation college student, the First Lady said, “I just never considered that I needed to take an additional journey or expand the boundaries of my own life.” Until she met her husband, she said that she was only focused on getting through school and paying off her loans. “His [life] had been more informed by experiences abroad. And watching him helped me to expand the way I looked at things; to consider my life as connected not just to my country but to the world. And it’s a perspective that we now are trying to instill in our daughters, as well.”

In addition to asking the students to do more, she also said that there are things the government can do to bring these opportunities within reach for more students. On top of the commitment her husband has made to doubling the size of Peace Corps, she said “[w]e’re also expanding exchange programs, study abroad opportunities; and encouraging universities like GW to create their own, because as those of you who have already participated in study abroad know, the most lasting lessons sometimes don’t always come from books.”

NAFSA thanks the First Lady for making this call to action and applauds the Administration’s efforts to put a global education within the reach of many more students. To read Michelle Obama’s full remarks at the George Washington University Commencement, click here.

4 Responses

Today’s generation of students definitely have a great opportunity to get out of the classroom and do some real world learning. I think Mrs. Obama is very in tune with the fact that the future of higher education must include a global perspective. We have to hope that all students will come to realize the opportunities available to them through their universities’ study abroad programs, as well as other organizations. As she said, “the most lasting lessons sometimes don’t always come from books.”

I am a student in Walden University’s online Higher Education and Adult learning doctoral program. I will be posting to this blog for the next 8 weeks as part of an assignment.

My interest is in intercultural and multicultural education so this blog is a perfect venue for my participation.

I agree completely with the Obama administration’s elective to aid in the expansion of study abroad programs in higher education. There is a great need for all students, regardless of which country they are from, to experience other cultures and peoples. So much of the problems that arise between and among peoples are due to misperceptions and misunderstandings. Travel and living in other countries ultimately shows how different and the same we all are.

This type of understanding about others and ourselves cannot be conveyed through books – it is experiential and many times transformational too. It is personal and can only be experienced by the individual, each in their own way.

I look forward to participating more in this blog in the coming months.

Janice, I’ve been following your discussions about Obama and her promotion of studying abroad, and as a former exchange student and a staffer at a study abroad organization, I couldn’t agree more about the importance of international exchanges. I appreciate your highlighting this because, before getting into your blog posts, I had no idea the First Lady was promoting studying abroad so intently. I’m commenting a bit late, I guess, but anyway, I liked when Obama says, “Engaging with the world doesn’t just change the course of other people’s lives – it may change the course of yours, too.” So true.

I’d be curious what you have to say about the other end of the exchange: not the student studying abroad, but the community hosting that student. I work pretty closely with host families for AFS-USA, and I find they often reap the same benefits that the students do. They’re getting to share American culture while also learning about their student’s home country. I think there’s great reciprocity when you invite someone into your home, with each side learning from each other, rather than just about each other. It’s another way of “taking it global,” with the added benefit of affecting your partner, your kids, your extended family and community, etc.

Thank you for all the comments and stories. Nika, I couldn’t agree more. Whenever a student studies abroad– whether they are students coming to the US or US students going abroad – their education extends well beyond the boundaries of the traditional classroom. And, it’s not just the students who are changed, but the people they come in contact with, whether host families, new friends, or even the cashier at the local grocery store. It’s the conversations they have, their small acts of kindness, or the impressions they leave behind that can help to make international education so powerful.

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On the NAFSA blog, the importance and impact of international education are in the spotlight. Join the conversation. Take action to support public policies that promote a better world through educational exchanges. Discuss innovative approaches to making the college experience more international. Read more